put asunder
Forcibly divide completely
Put asunder means to separate or divide, especially what was joined together.
The phrase is formal and literary, most familiar from the marriage ceremony: What God has joined together, let no man put asunder.
Outside religious contexts, it appears in elevated prose about forces that tear apart relationships, nations, or bonds: War put asunder families that had lived peacefully for generations.
- disuniteCause to separate
- tear apartForcefully separate into pieces
- divideSeparate into parts
- rendTear apart violently
- break apartSeparate into pieces
pull apart · detach · split · drive a wedge · come between · estrange · rupture · sever · cut in half · bisect · disjoin · alienate · rive · divorce · cleave · separate · fracture · disconnect
put asunderunite
Bring together as one
join · bring together · join together · combine · merge
put asunderkeep together
Preserve unity of group
hold together · preserve · maintain · uphold · sanctify
put, asunder, puts, putting, putter, sunder, sundered, sundering, sunders